2 NEW THINGYS: Singing and Getting Published

Howdy, Campers ~ and Happy Poetry Friday! (the links to PF and to my upcoming free poetry class are at the end of this post).

TeachingAuthors' topic this round is "Something New for the New Year" and it's my turn. But there's so much happening these days...where should I begin?

Let's start with singing!

For years, I've run two folk music clubs: The Santa Monica Folk Music Club and The Beach Cities Folk Club. So many songs are poetry...and so much poetry can be sung.

About a year ago, I approached the organizers of our local politial events, suggesting that our rallies needed music. Singing together in the midst of struggle brings joy and a sense of community to marches and rallies.

I've been the "music wrangler" ever since. We named ourselves The Resisters. My favorite feedback we've gotten after a rally is: "I come to these rallies to hear the music!"

And then, in January of this year, in the midst of danger and horrific violence in Minnesota, a beautiful thing took seed. Watch Anderson Cooper's 3 min and 30 second video to witness its growth.

Singing Resisance now trains groups all over this country (called Pods) teaching us that singing is resistance.

There are 18 singers in our pod. The number of singers who are available for any one event varies widely--once there were only two--and that worked out just fine. Our pod meets at my house, and today eight singers showed up for our last rehearsal before the March 28th rally

I am filled with joy. Most of the songs we will be singing are short and easy to pick up. One of my favorite songs is longer but also easy to learn. It's called SINGING FOR OUR LIVES, written by Holly Near. Watch Holly lead her crazy-beautiful 4 minute song

Now, let's talk poetry!

I'm thrilled to announce that one of my poems has just been published in 

DEMOCRACY'S URGENT CALL ~ 

A Poetry Anthology by League of Women Voters Members

Here were the submission guidelines:

We invite original poems that reflect on the guiding principles of democracy—such as justice, equality, freedom, civic engagement, and the common good.​ Please avoid references to specific elected officials or political parties, as we are committed to maintaining a nonpartisan focus.

We welcome a wide range of voices, styles, and perspectives. ​Surprise us with something fresh—insightful, musical, memorable. We’re looking for poems that move us: make us laugh, cry, reflect, or ​see the world in a new way. Both free verse and traditional forms are encouraged.

Please submit one unpublished, original poem of no more than 30 lines, ​including stanza breaks, formatted to fit on a single page using Times New Roman with 12 pt font. Submissions with special formatting, visual elements, or artwork cannot be considered.

A panel including a former Poet Laureate, a University of Wisconsin Professor of Poetry, and an experienced editor will review submissions and make final selections.

Chosen poems will reflect the League of Women Voters’ commitment to nonpartisanship as well as diversity, equity, and inclusion.

So! I plowed through the file of political poems I've written over the years...and also wrote some new ones.

Then I chose six of my favorite poems and sent them to five important people in my life: my husband, my sister Lyra, Teri, the president of our local League, a dear friend who is not on the same page with me politically, and my best friend Bruce (who is also a children's author and poet). 

I asked them to rank the poems first to last.

In a minute I'll post the poem for you, but it might help to know that I live in California, and for years I've been part of a task force in our community to teach people earthquake safety.

Okay, here's the poem my friends voted for, which I submitted, and which was accepted:

EARTHQUAKE
by April Halprin Wayland

She was ready.
On the shelves in her garage
were jugs of water,
cans of cat and dog food,
boxes of energy bars,
bandages, flashlights, batteries.

She was ready.
She stored sturdy shoes
beneath the bed
because in the aftermath,​
when you're running to help someone,
broken glass will slash your feet.

She was ready...
but not for this.
Not for tornadoes,
green-faced warlocks,
prison guards,
or flying monkeys.

Still, she was glad
for the sturdy shoes
beneath her bed.
There wasn't time
for bloody feet.
She was off to save the world.

poem © 2026 April Halprin Wayland

Thank you, Marcie, for hosting Poetry Friday this week!

Oh--I almost forgot!

Come join my next 3-hour free class 

on the first day of Poetry Month, April 1st 2026:

UCLA Extension's Writers' Program class, 

INTRO TO WRITING THE CHILDREN'S POETRY

~ A Workshop for Absolute Beginners

Enrollment ends soon...classes fill FAST. Why?

Because UCLA Extension offers 3-hour classes for FREE!

Do I still get nervous when my classes begin? You betcha.

But the moment I know my students and I are in that flow--that's the Great Gift.

many thanks to Barney Saltzberg for this illustration

Note: this is a basic workshop for absolute beginners.

💓Thank you for reading this post💓

Now, it's your turn. What's something new in your life this year?

Pause Politics With Poetry and Songs!

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Howdy Campers, & Happy Poetry Friday! (The link to this week's PF host, my poem, and a reminder of our latest book give away are below.) 

Today, we in the TeachingAuthors treehouse begin tackling the topic: If/how the season affects our writing/work plans/schedule.

Hmm. For me, it's not about how the season of summer affects my writing, but how campaign seasons affect it.

photo by April Halprin Wayland 2007

In 2004, Bruce Balan and I co-founded a PAC (political action committee), AIC. Every four years since, we've put aside much of our lives to help make our country kinder and more civilized towards children. After the election, we settle back into our lives to volunteer, to play, to parent, to be a friend, to write and to teach.

That's how it used to be. But after the November 2016 election, AIC members asked us to keep working for our children's futures.

What does this mean for my writing? I still write a poem a day, but now, just 100 days from November 6th,  my books have gone "to the back of the bus." Argh.

But there's good news, too. To combat my fury/fear/foreboding while working for change, I've been reading Alison McGhee's inspiring and poetic blog posts, reading the marvelous book, World Enough & Time: on Creativity and Slowing Down by Christian McEwen (actually listening to—the author narrates it in a soothing voice with an English accent), listening to less news and more music.

Ah, music! As a longtime folk music fan, I've discovered and fallen in love with this anthem to peace by Woody Guthrie, which his son Arlo Guthrie put to music as Woody was dying:


MY PEACE
Words by Woody Guthrie, Music by Arlo Guthrie 

My peace my peace is all I’ve got
that I can give to you
My peace is all I ever had
that’s all I ever knew
.
I give my peace to green and black
to red and white and blue
my peace my peace is all I’ve got
that I can give to you
.
My peace, my peace is all I’ve got
it's all I've ever known
My peace is worth a thousand times more
than anything I own
.
I pass my peace around and around
‘cross hands of every hue;
my peace, my peace is all I’ve got
that I can to give to you
...........................................................................................................

I decided to imitate this song for my daily poem. "How hard can it be?" I thought, "It's so dang simple."

So I broke it down to figure out what form Woody used (the letters at the start of each line indicate the rhymes):

A My peace my peace is all I've got
B that I can give to you
C my peace
B
.
D xx my peace
B
A my peace my peace is all I’ve got
B that I can give to you
.
A My peace, my peace is all I’ve got
E
F My peace
E
.
G xx my peace
B
A my peace, my peace is all I’ve got
B that I can to give to you

I have a new appreciation of Woody's songs that often sound simple. 

As writer Lillian Ross said: The act of a pro is to make it look easy. Fred Astaire doesn't grunt when he dances to let you know how hard it is. If you're good at it, you leave no fingerprints.

Soooo...here's my imitative poem—still a muddy draft. (originally the last line was in winter, spring and fall  I wrote this note to myself about it: The repeated line does not deserve to be the last line.)

THIS PIECE I'VE WRITTEN (after Woody Guthrie's THIS PEACE)
by April Halprin Wayland
.
This piece, this piece is all I've made
but I must heed its call
this piece has taken all my days
although I know it's small
.
this piece is gathered from the fields
and from a waterfall
This piece, this piece is all I've made
but I must heed its call
.
This piece, this piece is all I've made
it's raw, uncivilized
this piece I wrote, then put away
it hadn't crystalized
.
I'm feeling brave I'll share it now
(if I can read my scrawl)
this piece, this piece is all I've made
but I must heed its call
.
poem (c)2018 by April Halprin Wayland. All rights reserved.

And so, while fighting the good fight, I am led to listen to, read books by, and try to emulate people who are kind, civilized and articulate.

photo by April Halprin Wayland 2017

And that's how this season has affected my writing.

Thank you for reading this, Campers. And what about you? Do you have looser/different goals in certain seasons, or are you pretty consistent year-round?

And don't forget TeachingAuthors' drawing for a chance to win an autographed copy to HP? WHO'S HE? by Patricia Karwatowicz, which ends August 3rd! Details on Carmela's post.

Thank you, Catherine, for hosting today at Reading To The Core!

posted with hope by April Halprin Wayland with help from Monkey, Eli and everyone who does good work.

Goodbye Songs, Goodbye JoAnn, Hello, Poetry Friday and a Poetry Prompt!

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Howdy Campers--and happy Poetry Friday!

Thanks to wonderful Mary Lee and Franki 

of A Year of Reading for hosting today!

This round, each Teaching Author (so far Carmela and Mary Ann) will be sharing one of our favorite posts by blogmate JoAnn Early Macken, now on our Blog Advisory Board (or BAB).  Just kidding.  We don't actually have a BAB, although maybe we should. We're saying goodbye to JoAnn who is so busy teaching, writing and running Wisconsin's SCBWI chapter, she can scarcely breathe.

JoAnn's poetry and photos sing.  Though we had hoped to talk about different posts from JoAnn's tenure, I was so struck by her poetry in the same post Mary Ann chose, I have to share JoAnn's photo and poem, "Landscape with Dog Nose":

Landscape with Dog Nose by JoAnn Early Macken

I wanted to capture the crisp horizon,

gradations of shades,

mountainous clouds,

but she insisted on

stepping into the shot.

Well, why not?

She’s always part of the picture.
photo and poem (c) 2012 JoAnn Early Macken, all rights reserved 

I'll miss blogmate JoAnn's unique view of the natural world, her kindness, her beautific smile, her poetry...and so much more.

If you missed her post with this poem, you'll find it here. Because it's an old post, you won't be able to comment on it, so share your thoughts below, or email them to the TeachingAuthors via this link.

We love you, JA!

When I think of goodbyes, folk songs flood my brain.  The first one that came to me as a tribute to JoAnn was Woody Guthrie's Deportee, which is a terrific and important song, but doesn't exactly hit the right emotional notes to send our JoAnn off to her next chapter.  I'm here to allay your fears: her leaving did NOT involve a firey plane crash.

Next, Tom Paxton's Last Thing on my Mind came to me--but again, his chorus just doesn't quite express our relationship with JoAnn:

Chorus from Tom Paxton's Last Thing on my Mind:

Are you goin' away with no word of farewell?

Will there be not a trace left behind?

I could have loved you better, didn't mean to be unkind;

Oh, you know that was the last thing on my mind.

The next one that popped up was Woody's children's song, Why Oh Why.  Just like three obstacles in a story, the third one's the charm--the perfect song!

Chorus from Woody Guthrie's Why Oh Why:

Why, oh why, oh why oh, why?
Why, oh why, oh why?
Because because because because
Goodbye goodbye goodbye

Okay...I know this looks--well, simple.  But you've gotta hear Woody sing it:

And here's another silly g'bye poem.  I wrote this one as my family ended a fairy tale vacation in Fiji:

GOOD-BYE FIJI

(bula = hello; vi naka = thank you; sota tallee = see you later)

by April Halprin Wayland  .

Bula, bula

and vinaka

Fiji rula:

no more clocka

everybody laughing, jolly

ask your name and make-a talka

leaving soon—so sota tallee!

poem (c) 2012 April Halprin Wayland, all rights reserved  

Writing Workout: Goodbye Poems

1) Get quiet.  Think about a recent goodbye.  Maybe a news event will inspire you, like Woody Guthrie's Deportees. Maybe it's deeply personal, like Tom Paxton's Last Thing on my Mind.  Perhaps it's silly like Woody's Why oh Why...or my Goodbye to Fiji.

2) Write it!

3) Share it!

P.S: Although I'm no longer in the running in the March Madness Poetry Tournament, I'm having a blast reading and voting as the new poems come in.  Come read along!

March is Music In Schools Month! And Happy Poetry Friday!

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Howdy Campers--Happy Poetry Friday!  And thank you, Liz Garton Scanlon, for hosting Poetry Friday this week!   

Did you know that March is Music in the Schools Month? Well, it is!  In fact, today's TeachingAuthors poem is actually a song written by our guest singer/songwriter who brings music to schools all over the country.  x

Hmmm...music in the schools...I remember Mrs. Priday, an older, potato-shaped woman with orange-ish hair, who played piano and joyfully taught us to sing at Franklin Elementary School in Santa Monica, CA.  And Richard Wagner, the Leonard Bernstein of Santa Monica schools, who lit a fire inside us when he turned on the William Tell Overture and let us put our heads down on our desks to listen.

And Sherman Plepler gave me private violin lessons once a week (during the school day!) in the musty basement of Franklin School.

Ahhh...the golden age of music in the schools.  But, hark! You can still find fabulous teachers using music in these days of school budget guillotines.

If you're lucky enough to be a fifth grader in my friend Allison Ho's classroom in Gardena, CA, you'll learn about heritage and different cultures through Broadway musicals. Allison opens her students' eyes to the world of arranged marriages ("Tradition" from Fiddler On The Roof and "You Are Beautiful" from Flower Drum Song), two cultures ("Farmer and the Cowman" from Oklahoma and "America" from Westside Story) and much, much  more--teaching them the songs and the dances, too.  Wouldn't you love to be in Allison's class?

And my buddy, folksinger/songwriter Bob Reid, teaches kids how to write their own songs.  So I've invited Bob in to talk about how he writes and teaches.

This is Bob Reid

There's a Light In You (click to listen...you must hear these kids singing it...)
words & music © Bob Reid 1995

Chorus:
There's a light in me, there's a light in you
Whatever language you speak
Whatever your point of view
Whatever people may say
Whatever people may do
There's a light in you
You must let your light shine through.

I am short, he is tall
It doesn't matter if I'm small
Whatever size I happen to be
There's a light in me
Please take the time to see.

Chorus

My eyes are brown, hers are blue
We may not share the same point of view
Whatever our hopes, our wishes, and dreams
There's a light that beams
We're closer than it seems.

Chorus

My friend Sam says she doesn't fit
When she wants to play the others want to sit
Times are hard, I must admit
I hope she doesn't quit
She's got to keep it lit.

Chorus

When the world is looking grim
It can happen to her, it can happen to him
That's when you need that light to glow
Come on and let it show
It's brighter than you know.

Chorus

When the sun has left the sky
Bringing darkness to the eye
Night reveals what can't be seen in the day
A glorious display
Behold, the Milky Way.

Chorus (2x)
AHW: What inspired you to write this song?

BR:  "There's A Light In You" was written in response to the flurry of songs I was hearing about people identifying by the color of their skin, giving attributes to people due to the color of their skin, black, yellow, red, or even songs that challenged that practice. They seemed to be framing the issue in a way that I felt was unhelpful and didn't seem to offer an alternative. I wanted to find a commonality, something that we all had, to bring us together.

The song is reminiscent for me of a song I sang as a child at Unitarian gatherings, "This Little Liberal Light of Mine" a variation of "This Little Light of Mine". There was a verse that said, "Don''t you try to poof it out!" "I'm gonna let it shine". The idea that there was this thing in us that we have to actively defend and tend and an awareness that the world may sometimes be inhospitable to our light, but it is our work to let it shine despite that.

AHW: What's your writing process?

BR: I wrote the song over several years. The chorus came first and then I worried that I would never find verses that could live up to the chorus. I sang it with fill in verses and added more and more, until my friend, Bill Harley, told me, "Bob, it's done!"

Bill, and my friend David Grover, both made recordings of it before I did. David sang it on the "Today Show" and at the White House Easter Event. We performed it at United Nations Headquarters with the United Nations International School Choir and Pete Seeger in a half hour concert we did for the kick-off of the International Year of Freshwater in 2003.

WATER   ...    photo by April Halprin Wayland (c) 2011

AHW:  Wow--pretty cool!  Do you have a favorite music-in-the-schools story?

BR: My favorite story is the group some 25 years ago with which I wrote the song, "Water." They were quite proud of that song. It was made into a clay animated film by Kristine Albrecht, an artist in Santa Cruz, CA, which won awards at film festivals around the country. In 2003, it was this song that was of interest to the United Nations, when Pete Seeger recommended it as the theme of their "International Year of Freshwater". I traveled to New York several times to perform it a several UN functions, such as "World Environment Day".
You can listen to it here.

Writing Workout: picking a topic ~ asking the right questions

AHW: How do you begin writing songs with students? I'm sure it's complex, so this really isn't a fair question... but can you point the way to help a teacher or parent help students write a song?

BR: I usually write in two sessions, one to come up with a topic in response to the question, "If a song can focus your attention on something for 3 or 4 minutes, what do you think is important enough to focus attention upon?"  I've usually sung them songs written with other groups to give them some idea of what can be done. Then I'll ask, "What will I play for someone when they ask what this class thought was important?"

Thanks for your time and inspiration
and thanks for stopping by, Bob!

Okay, readers...it's time for you to write your own song.  So ask yourself Bob's questions, take a good deep breath, and write with joy ~ 

Out & About!  

Three TeachingAuthors: (Esther Hershenhorn, Mary Ann Rodman and I) will join two fabulous professors (Roxanne Owens and Marie Donovan from DePaul University) at the Illinois Reading Council's Annual Conference in Springfield, IL on Thursday, March 17th.  We'll be teaching a workshop (two times!) titled: Helping You (and Your Students!) Connect to the Writer Within.  In addition, I'll be participating in IRC's Poetry Coffeehouse on Friday, March 18th.  Woo-woo!  We think it's going to be a hot time in the old town and hope you can join us!

 Where is Poetry Friday today?

Six Word Resolutions & Goals! A Book Giveaway! And a New Year's Poem For You!

Hiya and HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Before we get to the book giveaway and the poem, I want to share my all-time favorite New Years song with you.  Singing folk songs is one way I learned how to write poetry.  This song is by the wonderful folksinger/songwriter Bruce Phillips, aka Utah Phillips—“The Golden Voice of the Great Southwest—a legend in his own time”.  It’s alternately called Here with You or I Believe if I Lived My Life Again.  One reason I love this tender song is the setting in which we sing it: in a big circle, arms around each other, acappella, exactly at midnight.  My favorite part is the chorus:

I believe if I lived my life again
I'd still be here with you
I believe if I lived my life again
I'd still be here with you

I can’t find an easy download of the music, but the lyrics are here.

Okay…and now, on with our Teaching Authors
New Year contest and book giveaway!

Remember our post (and book giveaway) about setting goals for the new school year?

Remember your own goals?  Well, the six of us at Teaching Authors can’t wait to hear how you’re doing.  And because there are SIX of us, we’d like you to send us a SIX word progress report.   To jog your memory, here's Carmela Martino’s original post about six word memoirs and here is my follow-up post about six word resolutions.

So--how did you do with those fall resolutions?   Who or what hindered you?  Who or what helped you?  Here's the place to 'fess up!  (And remember, we writers also edit—both our writing and our lives.  So if you didn’t quite make that goal, revise it and let us know your new one—in six words or less, of course!)

Here’s my own progress report:
Writing, submitting, teaching—I’m on fire!

What’s yours?  Post it by January 13th and you could win my picture book NEW YEAR AT THE PIER, which Tablet Magazine just named it Best Jewish Picture Book of the Year!  Contest details below.

Wanna Win a Book? Rules:
1) Post one six word progress report on your writing, reading or teaching goal…or your revised goal.
2) Provide your email address or a link to your own blog in your comment so that we can contact you. (U.S. residents only, please.) 
3) Entries must be posted by 11 p.m. Wednesday, January 13, 2010 (Central Standard Time).
4) The winner will be announced by 11 p.m., Friday, January 15, 2010.
Here are the complete rules (scroll down)--g'luck!

And now for the poem...from me to you. (Please imagine that the first stanza below is four lines and all the rest are three lines...this format doesn't allow lines quite that long!)

THIS YEAR

by April Halprin Wayland

Because we lost Fred last year, because I had one last kiss from

Aunt Rose, from Aunt Cissy, from Aunt Polly, from Morrie…

because I want to hold on, hold back, hold them,

because I can’t, because you can’t, because we can’t,

because of this slant of sun on bees buzzing from their white boxes,

because of one spoonful of custard apple, because of this persimmon,

because your guitar, all wood and gut, echoes in rings around these things,

this year

let’s not miss present tense, salty pistachio, soft pianissimo,

let’s not miss sage incense, Native flute, one bite of fruit,

and let’s not miss these arms, these generous arms,

these loving arms, wrapping warm around us

this year.

© April Halprin Wayland

Two things in this New Year: remember to breathe and write with joy.

all drawings by April Halprin Wayland--please credit.